Tune into enough performance podcasters, and you'll be tempting to think that a nap is a superpower: more than a sticking plaster after poor sleep, but a shortcut towards a better memory, better spirits and possibly improved athletic performance. Elite footballers swear by it – as do professional piano players, UFC champions & high-profile executives. But if you don't have a room for napping or employment that allows regular snoozing, are there *really* enough benefits to a short sleep for it to be worth the hassle? Can you find a surefire technique to get to sleep quickly enough? And can you truly ensure you will get up feeling better, rather than worse?
Exploring The Nap Motivation
“Experts note three key drivers for daytime sleep for many people,” notes an expert sleep science researcher. “One is what we call compensatory napping, which is what you do when you’ve had insufficient sleep the previous night. The second is preparatory napping, when you are pre-empting a sleep deficit ahead, for instance when working graveyard shifts. The third is called “appetitive drive”, which simply boils down to desire: you get an opportunity to nap in the daytime, and it feels nice to do it.”
The primary task to undertake, so, is to examine your reason for napping. “Naps can be truly beneficial when nighttime sleep is disturbed due to causes beyond your control – for example, when you are a new parent, or if you are healing from illness or strenuous activity,” says a sleep specialist. “But if you nap since your sleep at night seems unreliable or unreliable, that is frequently an indicator your body's sleep pressure is not as strong as it should be. Under those circumstances, naps can become part of the problem, rather than the answer. Utilize daytime sleep for brief periods for temporary issues – the priority ought to remain a strong and predictable night’s sleep.”
The Ideal Nap Duration
Therefore that daytime sleep must not be sufficiently lengthy to interfere with your sleep at night, and preferably are not recommended after about 3pm (contingent on the time you retire at night). What's a reasonable length? Guidelines are mixed. In one of the most-cited studies regarding daytime sleep, experts noted that crew members experienced improvements of over 50% in vigilance and a 34% boost in cognitive performance after a 26-minute nap (to be precise, this included a six-minute falling asleep phase). “I recommend setting a timer for half an hour or less – the majority doze off quickly,” notes a specialist. “There’s a lot of guidance out there regarding the optimal amount for sleeping, but that tends to make people feel more anxious above all – and the most counterproductive thing you can do while aiming to fall asleep is worry about it.”
If you plan to sleep for longer, avoid the 45-60 minute window that induces sleep grogginess, that disoriented sensation upon waking. “The science indicates it's more effective to opt for a longer nap of 60 to 90 minutes rather than a mid-length nap,” notes the sleep scientist. “45 minutes is long enough to send you into a deep sleep stage making it more likely to feel disoriented when you wake up – while if you extend it a bit longer to 60 or 90 minutes, it's likely you'll to be on the end a full cycle and are likely to wake up feeling more alert. Though if you nap for a long period, it may impact your sleep that night.”
Creating the Perfect Snooze Setting
As for precise methods, recommendations vary. A few professionals suggest employing comparable habits one would use to foster a good night’s sleep: a silent space, a supportive surface and minimal light as you can manage. Alternatively, experts propose that you should merely snooze on a couch in whatever light is present – both to discourage post-nap grogginess and to “protect” your bedroom as the place you associate with proper sleep. “Falling asleep is notoriously difficult to will,” explains a sleep coach. “Without any sleepiness, it is tougher to lie down and essentially tell yourself to go to sleep. There must be some sleep pressure there to initiate sleep in the first place. Personally, I can often snooze during the day and wake up naturally without an alarm, however, what assists a lot of people is to wait for a moment that they’re naturally slightly tired and then simply relax into it.”
Experimentation is key, and should you have few options – such as, when aiming to fit in 40 winks during a commute or at the office – there’s nothing wrong to employ some accessories. “In my work with footballers, I recommend that they not rely on napping in bed, as they’re going to have|they will
